Paulo Costa vs. Uriah Hall UFC Atlantic City Bout Derailed

A planned UFC Fight Night 128 bout between undefeated middleweight Paulo Costa and former The Ultimate Fighter finalist Uriah Hall has been derailed due to injury.

Costa (11-0) was looking to take his next step up the middleweight ladder, facing Hall in a featured bout on April 21 in Atlantic City, N.J., but an injury has forced him out of the fight. Costa confirmed the news via Instagram, following an initial report by Brazilian news outlet Combate.

“This is not good news for my fans… I had a serious injury, partial breaking of biceps ligament,” wrote Costa, who also goes by the name Borrachinha. “I know that you are excited to see me again and I am too, but I need some more time to return to show all my potential to you in the cage, soon you will see me again. Probably in June. God bless. God bless.”

Costa reportedly suffered a 30-percent tear of his left biceps during training on Monday, which will require about six weeks on the sidelines to heal. As he noted, Costa is hoping to return in June.

Costa is one of the more exciting UFC middleweight prospects in recent memory. He has fought just three times in the Octagon, but has won all three bouts by way of knockout. His most recent victory was a second-round finish of former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks.

Hall (13-8) once held the position that Costa currently maintains. A former Ring of Combat middleweight champion, Hall emerged from the seventeenth season of The Ultimate Fighter with high praise as the next big thing in the middleweight division. Though he has spent the past five years in the Octagon, Hall has struggled to regain the bruising form that made him a TUF 17 favorite.

This article first appeared at News – MMAWeekly.com